Guardians
, a Guardian]]Guardians are humans bonded to a particular old blood Atari. Origins All Guardians were originally human, but their ancestors swore an oath of loyalty to a group of Atari, centuries ago. Those Atari doubted the value of their word, so they used an ability to force the oath to be true, and to bind the humans to them, making them Guardians. Throughout the centuries, they continued to use the abilities to improve and aid their Guardians. A Guardian is born human, and remains so until the first time he or she meets an Atari. He or she then bonds to this Atari and becomes a Guardian, though the change is so subtle that it is at first almost impossible to detect. He or she feels connected to the Atari and protective of her or him, and the improvements and abilities gradually begin to develop. However, it also seems that once an individual has past a certain age, perhaps 30 or 35, it is no longer possible for the Guardian status to be activated, if still passive at that age. It is also impossible for the Guardian status to be fully activated when still an infant or young child. However, a certain protectiveness can still develop at this age. It is possible for a bond to transfer to another Atari, in future. If a Guardian first bonded to an Atari who was not a descendant of the particular Atari his ancestor swore to, and if he or she then meets such a descendant, the bond would transfer immediately. Each Guardian also technically has an unique Atari, and the bond would also transfer if they were to meet. Appearance Guardians are still technically human, and therefore they remain looking human, and keep the same appearance as they had before being activated. However, they have a slight tendency of being tall, strong and muscular. Sometimes old adaptations can also affect their appearance, e.g. the colour shifting of Nick Harvard's eyes. Nature All Guardians are extremely protective over their Atari, and not only because their lives are now linked. They care very much for them and become very close, often forming intense friendships, family-like relationships and occasionally romantic relationships, though this last one is rare. They are very defensive over their Atari. Apart from this, their natures are completely human and their personalities tend to remain similar to how they'd been before becoming active Guardians. Guardian Gifts Guardians do not possess any extremely supernatural abilities. However, they are stronger, faster and more agile than a normal human, and they heal at an accelerated rate. They tend to become skilled in various fighting methods quickly. The bond also gives them a connection with their Atari, so that they have some sense of the Atari's location and emotional and physical state. If the bond is broken by the Atari's death, the Guardian will sense this immediately, almost like a hole within them. The broken bond will almost always turn fatal. However, the bond will only break at death, and the threat before then is no different compared to the pain sensed by any serious but survivable wound. Atari can also occasionally use their abilities to add to a Guardian, e.g. one of the Harvard family ancestors was given the addition of random shapeshifting, which echoes in Nick's eye colour shifting. However, doing so is extremely rare. Weaknesses The greatest weakness of any Guardian is harm caused to his or her Atari charge. They can feel their pain as it if was their own, and no Guardian can survive the Atari's death. The Guardian's subsequent death is then inevitable, whether from active suicide, self-neglect in grief, or a drive for revenge. It is sometimes possible for another Atari to take up the Guardian in order to try to save him or her, but this is rare, due to the low success rate and the pain the Atari would experience if he or she fails. The bond will be repaired and the Guardian saved if the Atari is somehow revived, but this does not happen automatically, only when he or she sees that the Atari is again alive. Guardians also possess the same weaknesses as normal humans. They are mortal and can be killed by a range of weapons and injuries, though they do heal more rapidly than someone who is not a Guardian. In a similar manner, they are less susceptible to illness but are not completely immune. Guardians age as normal. Known Guardians *Daniel Harvard *Nick Harvard *Matthew Ashford Category:Species